Brilliant home improvements are all about preservation. In the case of these two smart moves, you'll save plenty of money - and memories.

Light Bulb Moment:
Bright Ways to Save Energy with Lighting
Smart lighting is lighting technology designed for energy efficiency. This may include high-efficiency fixtures and automated controls that make adjustments based on conditions such as occupancy or daylight availability.

Lighting takes up a lot of energy and even a small percentage improvement in efficiency will make a big difference to your electric bill. According to the statistics, 20 to 50 percent of total energy consumed in homes and offices are used for lighting.
There are several approaches used to minimize lighting energy expenditure:

• Specify exact illumination requirements for each given area; don't over light the space.

• Analyze lighting quality to ensure that adverse components of lighting, like glare or an incorrect color spectrum, are not biasing the design.

• Design around time-of-day use that does not expend unnecessary energy.

• Select fixture and lamp types that reflect the best-available technology for energy conservation.

• Use occupancy sensors to allow operation for whenever someone is within the area being scanned.

Valencia Lighting 254-9070

Smart Preservation:
Heirloom Art
Light and chemical exposure can cause permanent, irreversible damage to your heirloom photo, art or memorabilia. Preservation framing and matting can significantly reduce damage from airborne pollution, humidity, temperature fluctuations, light and surrounding materials, preventing your art or photograph from yellowing and serving as a protective barrier. You can even choose finishing options like acid-free UV protective glaze and acid-free foamcore. Of course, for ultimate preservation, keep your precious piece out of direct light and away from working fireplaces and air vents.

FASTFRAME 291-1325

Go Green with Glass
With most homeowners choosing a solid surface for their countertops today, the majority tend to lean towards granite, marble or quartz, overlooking one very practical option: glass slabs. Surfaces USA offers Urth Glass, made from 99-percent recycled glass with no resin.

This is an environmentally-friendly product with virtually no maintenance. The glass slabs are designed for commercial or residential use as well as interior and exterior applications. It is the ideal material for so many different applications: kitchens, bartops, tables, fireplace surrounds, bathrooms, counters and shower walls. It is translucent and absolutely breathtaking when backlit, too. Other considerations include...

• It's stain-resistant, bacteria-free and requires virtually no maintenance

• The color is weather-resistant and will not change

• There are 10 colors to choose from, the majority of which are fully translucent

• The glass base contains no glue or chemicals

• It can be repaired if scratched, unlike many other glass lines

Experience the palette yourself at Surfaces USA's beautiful showroom in Castaic.

Surfaces USA 775-9404

Pendant Perfection
When going through the remodeling process, many homeowners want to take the eco-friendly route while staying on budget. When thinking of options, many homeowners will overlook the lighting. Don't! You'll need to illuminate a large number of spaces - and you should do it in an efficient manner.

By selecting LED pendants, your kitchen will have a longer lifespan while using minimal wattage. One can still have the same warm tones by selecting the proper kelvin temperature to match that of your previous incandescent bulbs, or the more-frequently-used fluorescent bulbs.

Not only will switching to LED benefit your pockets in the long run, but also the overall temperature in your kitchen, as they produce less heat. Dannick Design 775-7430